Sandra Walker is a Senior Teaching Fellow in Mental Health at Southampton University, where she is also a doctorate student researching the patient experience of the mental health assessment in the Emergency Department. She is a Qualified Mental Health Nurse with a wide range of clinical experience spanning more than 20 years. In addition to her university work Sandra is a professional musician and does voluntary work for various mental health organisations, including being the coordinator for the Hampshire Human Library – an international initiative aimed at reducing stigmatisation through interaction and education of the public. She is the creative director of The Sanity Company, which publishes books aimed at helping children and young people to develop good mental health and problem-solving skills.
Being able to engage with service users and communicate effectively is a fundamental skill identified by the NMC and required of all mental health nurses. The reality is that building rapport and developing therapeutic relationships does not come instinctively for everyone. The authors have responded to this with a book that explains the different communication theories and models and goes on to show students how they work in the real world. Innovative exercises encourage reflection and enable students to practice their developing communication skills as they progress. Throughout the book the authors are focussed on promoting recovery and have put the service user at the centre of the discussion, ensuring that their voice is heard. Key features: - Covers the communication content of the new NMC Standards and Essential Skills Clusters for pre-registration degree-level nursing education - Focussed on promoting recovery and adopts a person-centred approach - Interactive style using realistic scenarios and case studies making theory easy to apply to practice - Includes a chapter co-authored by a service user offering a unique insight.
